A decades-old marriage is suddenly becoming campaign fodder in one of America’s most competitive House races.
Democratic congressional candidate JoAnna Mendoza is facing new questions after court records revealed she never publicly discussed a brief 1998 marriage to a Syrian national — a relationship that lasted just over two weeks before the couple separated.
The revelation comes as Mendoza seeks to unseat Republican Rep. Juan Ciscomani in Arizona’s battleground 6th Congressional District, where immigration and border security have become defining campaign issues.
According to court records first reported by the Daily Mail, Mendoza married Tariq Alrawwass while in Syria in 1998. She returned to the United States about a week later, while Alrawwass remained overseas.
“I returned to the U.S. in May of 1998, approximately one week after our marriage. Respondent did not return with me,” Mendoza wrote in a March 2001 court filing.
Court documents show Mendoza waited until October 2000 to file for divorce after struggling to locate Alrawwass. The filings state she eventually reached him through one of his relatives living in the United States, with help from her father.
A new line of attack
The marriage itself occurred nearly three decades ago, but Republicans are using the disclosure to question Mendoza’s transparency, arguing voters should have known about it before casting their ballots.
The timing is especially notable because Mendoza has made immigration and border security central pillars of her campaign, placing renewed attention on her personal history as the race enters a critical phase.
A race both parties are watching
Arizona’s 6th District is expected to be one of the key battlegrounds that could help determine control of the House.
With national attention already focused on the contest, the renewed scrutiny is likely to give Republicans another line of attack while forcing Mendoza’s campaign to respond to questions about a chapter of her personal life that had remained largely out of public view.
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